For Claire and Tenny, hiking the CDT had been an ambition but they soon decided that they needed to do something else. Between the two of them, they hatched a plan to walk the entire length of the Southern Border of the US, stretching from San Diego in the west to Brownsville and the Gulf of Mexico in Texas to the east. Here's Claire.

With no defined trail, the two of them set out to make their way and learn about the issues on both sides. It was an eye-opening experience for both women. Here's Tenny.

They were able to experience the kindness of strangers and the desperation of the disenfranchised. They each said that many of their pre-conceived notions were overturned by their experience.

On the way, the two women wrote an excellent blog that mapped out what they saw. If you'd like to read it, go to https://walktheborder.com/ and, for pictures, you can follow them on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/clairetenny.walktheborder/

The last five interviewees from the Outdoor Retailers Summer Market in Denver were:

Andrew Sidel, of Four Points, selling his slow-burning energy bars. You can learn more at https://www.fourpointsbar.com/

Brandon Rodriguez showed me the Spark, a new knee support combining kinesiology taping and compression. This IS NOT currently available but will be out sometime towards the end of October or early November. The link (at that time) will be https://www.brownmed.com/spark. Once again, THIS LINK DOESN"T CURRENTLY TAKE YOU ANYWHERE. Come back in November.

Nicole Farah of Teva introduced me to a new shoe and suggested a good Teva for a long-distance hike. Go to https://www.teva.com/ for more.

Kent Hernandez of Bucklegear (https://www.bucklegear.com/) AND Bad Raccoon (https://www.badraccoonco.com/) showed me two excellent items; the Camp Gear Hanger and some old school–but new designs–handerchiefs.

Finally, Tim Richard shared the story of Oboz and how they give back to the outdoors. https://obozfootwear.com